Inline message alert

ABSTRACT

A computing device can be running a current context and displaying a current interface for the current context when a communication is received on the device. The device can display an alert on a portion of a display screen in conjunction with the current interface being displayed. The alert can include information about the communication, which can allow a user to better determine whether or not the communication requires immediate attention. If the user ignores the alert, it will disappear in a specified amount of time. If the user chooses to deal with the communication, he/she can tap on the alert to bring up an overlay interface for replying to the communication without having to switch to another application specifically configured for handling (e.g., viewing, replying to) the communication. After the user replies to the communication using the overlay interface, he/she can be automatically brought back to the current interface.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/225,729, filed Aug. 1, 2016, which is a continuation of U.S.application Ser. No. 13/627,291, filed on Sep. 26, 2012, now U.S. Pat.No. 9,406,103; of which the full disclosures of these applications areincorporated herein by reference for all purposes.

BACKGROUND

Computing devices are often used for running applications. Multipleapplications are commonly executed and running simultaneously asmultitasking has become increasingly more efficient. Many computingdevice users run multiple applications at the same time in theireveryday routines. For example, a user in his/her car might use a GPSapplication while also using a music playing application. In anotherexample, a user playing a video game application might also be replyingto text messages via a text messaging application. Furthermore, pushnotifications and real-time alerts and notifications have also becomepopular. Users of computing devices often desire to know the moment theyreceive electronic mails (e.g., push email), text messages, and othersoftware announcements (e.g., software updates, social networknotifications, etc.). However, often times a user may be engaged in anapplication, such as a game app or a movie watching app, when a messageis received. If the user wants to look at or reply to the message,he/she has to exit or switch out of his/her currently engagedapplication and switch to another application for accessing the message.This is inconvenient and inefficient because the computing device has toswitch back and forth between multiple applications. As such, a moreefficient approach to handling received messages is needed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various embodiments in accordance with the present disclosure will bedescribed with reference to the drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates an example environment in which aspects of thevarious embodiments can be utilized;

FIG. 2A illustrates an example device embodiment for handling inlinemessage alerts;

FIG. 2B illustrates an example device embodiment for handling inlinemessage alerts;

FIG. 2C illustrates an example device embodiment for handling inlinemessage alerts;

FIG. 3A illustrates an example device embodiment for handling inlinemessage alerts;

FIG. 3B illustrates an example device embodiment for handling inlinemessage alerts;

FIG. 3C illustrates an example device embodiment for handling inlinemessage alerts;

FIG. 4 illustrates an example method embodiment for handling inlinemessage alerts;

FIG. 5 illustrates an example method embodiment for handling inlinemessage alerts;

FIG. 6 illustrates an example device that can be used to implementaspects of the various embodiments;

FIG. 7 illustrates example components of a client device such as thatillustrated in FIG. 6; and

FIG. 8 illustrates an environment in which various embodiments can beimplemented.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Systems and methods in accordance with various embodiments of thepresent disclosure overcome one or more of the above-referenced andother deficiencies in conventional approaches to managing context in acomputing device. In particular, various embodiments of the presentdisclosure can provide for performing an action with respect to (e.g.,replying to) a received communication without having to switch out of acurrent context on a computing device, such as to close a currentapplication and open an application specifically configured to enablethe user to view and perform various actions with respect to thecommunication.

In some embodiments, at least a first application is running on acomputing device. An interface for the first application can bedisplayed on a display screen of the device. While the user is operatingand/or interacting with the first application, an incoming message (orother such communication) can be received on (or generated by) thecomputing device. There can be a second application that is the defaultprogram for performing tasks associated with the type of message (e.g.,viewing the message, replying to the message, etc.). The computingdevice can provide an alert (i.e., notification) indicating that themessage has been received. The alert can be displayed on a portion ofthe display screen while at least a portion of the interface for thefirst application is displayed on the remaining portion of the screen.In some embodiments, a sound and/or a vibration can be presented inconjunction with the displaying of the alert. The alert can containsufficient information for the user to decide whether to address/dealwith the message now or whether he/she can address/deal with the messagelater. For example, the alert can include the name of the sender and oneor two lines of the message. As such, the user can perhaps make a quick,but informed determination as to whether the message warrants his/herimmediate attention or not.

If the user decides to ignore the alert (i.e., notification) in at leastone embodiment, the alert will disappear from the screen after aspecified amount of time and the alert will be stored in a notificationgroup that can be easily accessed by the user later on. If the userdecides to deal with the message now, he/she can tap on the alert tolaunch an interface without switching out of the first application andinto the second application. The interface can be presented asoverlaying the first application and can enable the user to perform oneor more actions with respect to the message (e.g., view the message,reply to the message, etc.). In some embodiments, the interface can bean extension and/or a modified version (e.g., basic/simple version) ofthe second application. In response to having performed the one or moreactions with respect to the message, the user can be automaticallyreturned to the first application. As such, the user who is currentlyusing the first application can, for example, reply to the messagewithout switching out of the first application and into the second(e.g., messaging) application, thereby saving valuable time, effort, andresources. In some embodiments, the first application can be paused whenthe user chooses to launch the interface; the first application canautomatically resume after the user has performed the one or moreactions with respect to the message using the interface. Many otheralternatives and variations are described and suggested below inrelation to at least some of the various embodiments.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example environment in which aspects of thevarious embodiments can be utilized. In the example environment 100,there can be a computing device 102. The computing device 102 cancomprise a display screen 104. The computing device 102 can run anapplication 106. A user 108 of the computing device 102 can operateand/or interact with the application 106 to perform various tasks.

The application 106 running on the computing device 102 can be anyapplication, such as an app, browser, game, utility, etc. In someembodiments, the computing device 102 can execute a plurality ofapplications. For example, one of the plurality of applications (e.g.,App A) can be running in the foreground of the device 102 (i.e.,foreground process), while some other applications (e.g., App B, App C,etc.) can run in the background (i.e., background processes), while theremaining applications (e.g., App D, App E, etc.) on the device 102 arenot currently being executed/run. The user 108 of the device 102 can beusing App A, which is running in the foreground. The user 108 can switchto another app, such as App B, thereby making App B run in theforeground and placing App A in the background.

In some embodiments, switching from a current application to anotherapplication involves removing the current application (e.g., or aninterface thereof) from focus and bringing the other application (e.g.,or an interface thereof) into focus. In some embodiments, switching fromone application to another involves placing the former application(e.g., or an interface thereof) into the background and bringing thelatter application (e.g., or an interface thereof) into the foreground.In some embodiments, switching from a first application to a secondapplication involves disabling/terminating the first application andenabling/initiating the second application.

FIG. 2A illustrates an example device embodiment for handling inlinemessage alerts. The example computing device 202 can be executing anapplication (i.e., App A) 206. In FIG. 2A, the application 206 is shownto be running in the foreground of the device 202; in other words, App A206 is running as a foreground process. In some embodiments, there canbe other applications running in the background (i.e., as backgroundprocesses) and still other applications that are not being run on thedevice 202. Moreover, the computing device 202 comprises a displayscreen 204. The application 206 (or an interface of the application 206)can be presented on the display screen 204, as shown in FIG. 2A.

FIG. 2B illustrates an example device embodiment for handling inlinemessage alerts. In FIG. 2B, the computing device 202 is running App A206 and displaying an interface of App A 206 on the display screen 204.In some embodiments, the computing device 202 can receive a message (orcommunication), which can include various data. For example, the messagecan be a text message (e.g., short message service (SMS) text message,chat message, etc.), a multimedia message (e.g., image/video message,audio message, voicemail, etc.), an electronic mail (email) message, amessage regarding a software announcement (e.g., app update, appreport/notice, app promotion/advertisement, social network notification,etc.), a system message (e.g., an operating system update, a calendarevent, a clock alarm, a reminder, etc.), or other various types ofmessages.

In some embodiments, the message is a type that is associated withanother application (i.e., App B). In some embodiments, the message is atype associated with the other application in that the message is a typethat is native to the other application; in other words, the otherapplication (i.e., App B) can be the default program for opening themessage. App B can be specifically configured to work with (e.g., view,open, reply to) the message. For example, if the message is a textmessage, then App B can be a text messaging app. In another example, ifthe message is an email message, then App B can be an email app.However, often times, when the message is received, the application withwhich the message is associated (i.e., App B) is not currently runningon the device 202 or is running in the background of the device 202,whereas App A 206 is running in the foreground of the device 202.

When the message is received on the device 202, the device 202 candisplay an alert (i.e., notification) 208 to indicate that the messagehas been received. In some embodiments, the alert 208 for the messagecan be presented on a portion of the display screen 204 in conjunctionwith (the interface of) the application 206 currently being run in theforeground. For example, the alert 208 can be displayed in a top,horizontal portion of the display screen 204 (as in FIG. 2B), theportion being only a small area (e.g., 5%, 10%, etc.) relative to theentire area of the screen 204; the remainder of the display screen 204can still be used to display the interface for App A 206. As such, thealert 208 can be unobtrusive with respect to the operation(s) of App A206, but still be viewable to a user of the computing device.

In some embodiments, the alert 208 can include sufficient informationabout the message to allow the user to make an informed decisionregarding whether he/she should deal with (e.g., view, reply to) themessage now (e.g., pause use of App A) or deal with the message later(e.g., finish using App A). For example, the alert 208 can include atleast information about the sender of the message (e.g., name of thesender, phone number of the sender, email address of the sender, pictureof the sender, etc.) and at least a portion of the content of themessage (e.g., the first twelve words, the first line, etc.). In someembodiments, the alert 208 can include a time (including date) of whenthe message was sent and/or received. Accordingly, if, for example, theuser sees that the sender is someone the user is expecting to hear fromand/or if the portion of the content of the message seems urgent, thenthe user can reply immediately; otherwise the user can wait to deal withthe message later.

In some embodiments, the user desires to deal with the messageimmediately. Instead of terminating and/or switching out of App A 206 togo into App B to handle the message, the device 202 can provide the useran option to handle the message while App A 206 is still running, asshown in FIG. 2C. For example, the alert 208 itself can be a button thatprovides the option for the user to handle the message immediately; theoption can be selected when the user taps on the alert 208 (e.g.,button) displayed on the display screen 204 (assuming that the displayscreen 204 comprises a touch sensor—i.e., assuming the display screen isa touchscreen), resulting in an interface 210 being provided/presented.In other words, the interface 210 can be provided/presented when theuser taps on the alert 208 on the display screen (e.g., touchscreen)204. In some embodiments, the interface 210 is presented as overlaying aportion of the interface of App A 206.

The interface 210 can handle/deal with the message by allowing the userto perform one or more actions with respect to the message. For example,if the message is a communicational message, the user can send a replyto the message (e.g., send a reply text message, send a reply email,etc.) using the interface 210. Continuing with the example, the user canuse the interface 210 to view/read the communicational message and totype/input a reply message.

In addition to sending replies, the interface 210 can enable the user toperform various other actions with respect to the message. For example,if the message includes instructions or a link for downloading data, theinterface 210 can allow the user to initiate a download of the data;once the download is initiated, the device 202 can automatically returnto the interface of App A 206. In another example, if the messageincludes data (e.g., software update file, media file, etc.), theinterface 210 can enable the user to initiate utilization of the data(e.g., installing the software update file, playing the media file,etc.); the device 202 can automatically return to the interface of App A206 when the utilization of the data is initiated. As such, theinterface 210 eliminates the need to terminate and/or switch out of AppA 206 to go into App B to handle/deal with the message.

In some embodiments, the alert 208 can provide at least one additionaloption for performing at least one additional action with respect to themessage. For example, if the alert 208 is tapped with two fingersinstead of one (as detected by the touchscreen), the message can bedeleted. In another example, when the alert 208 pressed (and held) for aspecified amount of time (e.g., 1 second, 2 seconds, etc.), a menu withvarious options for performing various actions with respect to themessage can be provided. The various actions can include deleting themessage, moving the message into a folder/directory, blocking a senderof the message, launching an application associated with the message,downloading data associated with the message, or utilizing data includedin the message. After the user selects an action, he/she canautomatically be returned back to his/her previous state/context (e.g.,the interface for App A 206).

In some embodiments, as discussed above, the message (e.g., text,multimedia, email) is a communicational message from a sender of themessage. The user wanting to reply to the message immediately can tapthe alert 208, which brings about the interface 210 without terminatingand/or switching out of App A. In some embodiments, the interface 210can comprise a view/rendering of the message 212, a text input field 214for replying to the message, and one or more input keys/methods (e.g., akeyboard) 216. The user can type his/her reply message into the replytext input field 214 via keyboard input 216. If the user changes his/hermind and does not want to reply right now, he/she can close theinterface 210 by selecting the close button 218, thereby automaticallyreturning the user to his/her previous context (e.g., App A 206). If,however, the user is ready to send his/her reply message, he/she canselect the send button 220 to send the reply message. In response toselecting the send button 220, the interface 210 can be removed fromdisplay on the display screen 204 and the user can automatically bereturned to his/her previous context (e.g., App A 206).

If the user chooses not to deal with the message immediately, he/she canignore the alert 208. In some embodiments, if the user ignores the alert208 for a specified amount of time (i.e., if the option provided by thealert 208 to handle/deal with the message is not selected by the userwithin a specified time period, e.g., 3 seconds, 4 seconds, etc.), thenthe alert 208 can be removed from display on the display screen 204. Assuch, the alert 208 for the message should not have caused significantinterference to the use of App A 206.

In some embodiments, App A can be (a part of) an operating system of thecomputing device. For example, App A can be a “home screen,” “desktop,”or “screen lock,” etc., of the operating system. Accordingly, in someembodiments, the present disclosure can enable the user to handlemessages without having to switch away from the “home screen,”“desktop,” or “screen lock,” etc., into another application (i.e., AppB) specifically configured to handle/deal with messages.

In some embodiments, App A 206 and App B can be the same application.For example, the user can be using a text message application to write amessage to a peer while an incoming text message from his/her parent isreceived. The user can quickly reply to his/her parent's message bytapping on the alert 208 and utilizing the interface 210 provided. Afterhe/she replies to his/her parent's message, the user can beautomatically returned to his/her message to the peer.

Referring now to FIG. 3A, FIG. 3A illustrates an example deviceembodiment for handling inline message alerts. There can be a computingdevice 302 running an application (i.e., App A) 306. The application 306(or an interface of the application 306) can be displayed on a displayscreen 304 on the computing device 302. When an incoming message isreceived on the device 302, there can be an alert 308 displayed on aportion of the display screen 304 while App A 306 is still running andits interface still being displayed in the remaining portion of thedisplay screen 304.

In some embodiments, the display screen 304 comprises a touch sensor(i.e., the display screen 304 is a touchscreen) capable of detecting adragging gesture by the user. The user can drag the alert 308 (or anarea on the screen 304 close in proximity to the alert 308) at the topof the screen 304 in a downward direction toward the bottom of thescreen 304. The dragging gesture from top to bottom can cause anotification group (e.g., list of notifications) to be pulled down andpresented as overlaying (the interface of) App A 206. FIG. 3Billustrates the notification group 310 in the midst of being pulleddown.

In some embodiments, the notification group can be opened when no alertsare displayed on the screen 304. For example, there can be a smallkey/area (not shown in FIG. 3B or FIG. 3C) on the top, center area ofthe top edge of the screen 304. The user can drag the key/area downwardto pull down the notification group 310.

FIG. 3C illustrates an example device embodiment for handling inlinemessage alerts. FIG. 3C includes a notification group 310 being pulleddown. The notification group 310 comprises notifications, which can beformer alerts, each of which is associated with a respective message (orcommunication). As such, the alert 308 for the message can also bestored as a notification. In particular, the alert 308 can be stored asthe newest/most recent notification in the notification group 310.Referring to FIG. 3C, out of those notifications in the notificationgroup (e.g., notification list) 310, “Notification A” is the oldestwhile the alert 308 (to be stored as “Notification H”) is thenewest/most recent.

The notification group 310 can store the alerts that were previouslyignored by the user (as well as those that were acted upon by the user).For example, if the user was previously busy with App A 306 and ended upignoring one or more alerts, the one or more alerts can be stored in thenotification group 310. When the user is no longer busy with App A 306or decides to check the notifications (i.e., past alerts), he/she canopen the notification group 310 and decide what to do with the one ormore alerts he/she previously ignored (each of which is now stored as a“Notification”).

In some embodiments, the user can tap the notification (andcorresponding message) he/she wants to deal with and/or handle. The usercan tap on a notification to trigger an interface (similar to theinterface 210 in FIG. 2C) for that notification to beprovided/presented. As discussed previously, the interface can enablethe user to perform an action with respect to the message (e.g., replyto the message) for that notification. As discussed above, in someembodiments, the user can press on a notification for a specified amountof time to open a menu with various options for performing variousactions with respect to the message corresponding to that notification.

In some embodiments, the notification group 310 can be closed (i.e.,removed from display on the display screen 304) when the user performs adragging gesture in a direction opposite to that of opening thenotification group 310. For example, the user can drag the “Alert formessage” in FIG. 3C upward to close the notification group 310. Inanother example, the notification group 310 can be closed by dragging anarea at the center, bottom edge of the screen 304 upward to the top edgeof the screen 304.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example method embodiment for handling inlinemessage alerts. It should be understood that there can be additional,fewer, or alternative steps performed in similar or alternative orders,or in parallel, within the scope of the various embodiments unlessotherwise stated. The example method embodiment 400 can begin withdisplaying, on a display screen of a computing device, a first interfaceof a first application executing on the computing device, at step 402.For example, the method 400 can determine to present a communicationthat is a message received on a computing device. At step 404, theexample method can receive a message, the message being of a messagetype associated with a second application.

At step 406, the method can display, on a portion of the display screen,an alert indicating the receiving of the message, wherein the alertincludes information indicative of a sender of the message and at leasta portion of the content of the message. The alert can be displayed on atop, horizontal strip of the display screen, while the remaining portionof the screen can be for displaying the first interface for the firstapplication, such as a game interface for a game application.

At step 408, the example method 400 can detect a user interaction withat least a portion of the alert. At step 410, the example method 400 candisplay, based on the detected user interaction, a second interface, thesecond interface overlaying at least a portion of the first interfacefor the first application. The second interface can be configured toreceive a user input for replying to the message without switching tothe second application. At step 412, the method can remove the secondinterface from the display screen and return to the first interface.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example method embodiment for handling inlinemessage alerts. Again, it should be understood that there can beadditional, fewer, or alternative steps performed in similar oralternative orders, or in parallel, within the scope of the variousembodiments unless otherwise stated. The example method embodiment 500can begin with receiving a communication to be presented on a computingdevice, at step 502. At step 504, the example method 500 can displaying,on a portion of a display screen of the computing device, an alertindicative of receipt of the communication. The alert can be displayedalong with at least a portion of a first interface of a firstapplication of the computing device and can provide an option fordisplaying a second interface for performing an action with respect tothe communication.

Step 506 can involve displaying, on the display screen, the secondinterface associated with a second application based on a selection ofthe option. The second interface can be overlaying the first interfaceand can be configured to receive a user input for causing the secondapplication to perform the action. The example method can remove thesecond interface upon receipt of the user input, at step 508.

In some embodiments, the interface 210 has features similar to that ofthe applications (natively) associated with their respective messages.In other words, in some embodiments, an interface 210 can have featuresthat are specifically configured to operate with a specific messagetype. For example, an interface for an mp3-type message can have a “PlayMusic” button. In another example, an interface for asoftware-update-type message can have an “Install Update” button. Insome embodiments, the interface 210 for a particular message can havefeatures similar to a lite version of the application specificallyconfigured for (the type of) the message (i.e., App. B).

In some embodiments, the alert (e.g., 208, 308) can provide multipleoptions for various actions. For example, within the alert, there can bea button to launch the application (i.e., App B) that is (natively)associated with (e.g., specifically configured for) the message (type),whereas the remaining portion of the alert (not including the App Blaunching button) can be a button to initiate the interface 210.

Various embodiments consistent with the present disclosure can also beimplemented for multiple gestures. In some embodiments, more than onegesture can be performed with respect to the alert (e.g., 208, 308) toinitiate various actions. For example, a one-finger tap can initiate theinterface 210 for the message (or communication), a two-finger tap candelete the message, a swipe across the alert can move the message into aspam folder or other directory, and a pressing of the alert for aspecified amount of time can bring up a menu for additional options andactions.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example electronic user device 600 that can beused in accordance with various embodiments. Although a portablecomputing device (e.g., an electronic book reader or tablet computer) isshown, it should be understood that any electronic device capable ofreceiving, determining, and/or processing input can be used inaccordance with various embodiments discussed herein, where the devicescan include, for example, desktop computers, notebook computers,personal data assistants, smart phones, video gaming consoles,television set top boxes, and portable media players. In this example,the computing device 600 has a display screen 602 on the front side,which under normal operation will display information to a user facingthe display screen (e.g., on the same side of the computing device asthe display screen). The computing device in this example includes atleast one camera 604 or other imaging element for capturing still orvideo image information over at least a field of view of the at leastone camera. In some embodiments, the computing device might only containone imaging element, and in other embodiments the computing device mightcontain several imaging elements. Each image capture element may be, forexample, a camera, a charge-coupled device (CCD), a motion detectionsensor, or an infrared sensor, among many other possibilities. If thereare multiple image capture elements on the computing device, the imagecapture elements may be of different types. In some embodiments, atleast one imaging element can include at least one wide-angle opticalelement, such as a fish eye lens, that enables the camera to captureimages over a wide range of angles, such as 180 degrees or more.Further, each image capture element can comprise a digital still camera,configured to capture subsequent frames in rapid succession, or a videocamera able to capture streaming video.

The example computing device 600 also includes at least one microphone606 or other audio capture device capable of capturing audio data, suchas words or commands spoken by a user of the device. In this example, amicrophone 606 is placed on the same side of the device as the displayscreen 602, such that the microphone will typically be better able tocapture words spoken by a user of the device. In at least someembodiments, a microphone can be a directional microphone that capturessound information from substantially directly in front of themicrophone, and picks up only a limited amount of sound from otherdirections. It should be understood that a microphone might be locatedon any appropriate surface of any region, face, or edge of the device indifferent embodiments, and that multiple microphones can be used foraudio recording and filtering purposes, etc.

The example computing device 600 also includes at least one orientationsensor 608, such as a position and/or movement-determining element. Sucha sensor can include, for example, an accelerometer or gyroscopeoperable to detect an orientation and/or change in orientation of thecomputing device, as well as small movements of the device. Anorientation sensor also can include an electronic or digital compass,which can indicate a direction (e.g., north or south) in which thedevice is determined to be pointing (e.g., with respect to a primaryaxis or other such aspect). An orientation sensor also can include orcomprise a global positioning system (GPS) or similar positioningelement operable to determine relative coordinates for a position of thecomputing device, as well as information about relatively largemovements of the device. Various embodiments can include one or moresuch elements in any appropriate combination. As should be understood,the algorithms or mechanisms used for determining relative position,orientation, and/or movement can depend at least in part upon theselection of elements available to the device.

FIG. 7 illustrates a logical arrangement of a set of general componentsof an example computing device 700 such as the device 600 described withrespect to FIG. 6. In this example, the device includes a processor 702for executing instructions that can be stored in a memory device orelement 704. As would be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art,the device can include many types of memory, data storage, ornon-transitory computer-readable storage media, such as a first datastorage for program instructions for execution by the processor 702, aseparate storage for images or data, a removable memory for sharinginformation with other devices, etc. The device typically will includesome type of display element 706, such as a touch screen or liquidcrystal display (LCD), although devices such as portable media playersmight convey information via other means, such as through audiospeakers. As discussed, the device in many embodiments will include atleast one image capture element 708 such as a camera or infrared sensorthat is able to image projected images or other objects in the vicinityof the device. Methods for capturing images or video using a cameraelement with a computing device are well known in the art and will notbe discussed herein in detail. It should be understood that imagecapture can be performed using a single image, multiple images, periodicimaging, continuous image capturing, image streaming, etc. Further, adevice can include the ability to start and/or stop image capture, suchas when receiving a command from a user, application, or other device.The example device similarly includes at least one audio capturecomponent 712, such as a mono or stereo microphone or microphone array,operable to capture audio information from at least one primarydirection. A microphone can be a uni- or omni-directional microphone asknown for such devices.

In some embodiments, the computing device 700 of FIG. 7 can include oneor more communication elements (not shown), such as a Wi-Fi, Bluetooth,RF, wired, or wireless communication system. The device in manyembodiments can communicate with a network, such as the Internet, andmay be able to communicate with other such devices. In some embodimentsthe device can include at least one additional input device able toreceive conventional input from a user. This conventional input caninclude, for example, a push button, touch pad, touch screen, wheel,joystick, keyboard, mouse, keypad, or any other such device or elementwhereby a user can input a command to the device. In some embodiments,however, such a device might not include any buttons at all, and mightbe controlled only through a combination of visual and audio commands,such that a user can control the device without having to be in contactwith the device.

The device 700 also can include at least one orientation or motionsensor 710. As discussed, such a sensor can include an accelerometer orgyroscope operable to detect an orientation and/or change inorientation, or an electronic or digital compass, which can indicate adirection in which the device is determined to be facing. Themechanism(s) also (or alternatively) can include or comprise a globalpositioning system (GPS) or similar positioning element operable todetermine relative coordinates for a position of the computing device,as well as information about relatively large movements of the device.The device can include other elements as well, such as may enablelocation determinations through triangulation or another such approach.These mechanisms can communicate with the processor 702, whereby thedevice can perform any of a number of actions described or suggestedherein.

As an example, a computing device such as that described with respect toFIG. 6 can capture and/or track various information for a user overtime. This information can include any appropriate information, such aslocation, actions (e.g., sending a message or creating a document), userbehavior (e.g., how often a user performs a task, the amount of time auser spends on a task, the ways in which a user navigates through aninterface, etc.), user preferences (e.g., how a user likes to receiveinformation), open applications, submitted requests, received calls, andthe like. As discussed above, the information can be stored in such away that the information is linked or otherwise associated whereby auser can access the information using any appropriate dimension or groupof dimensions.

As discussed, different approaches can be implemented in variousenvironments in accordance with the described embodiments. For example,FIG. 8 illustrates an example of an environment 800 for implementingaspects in accordance with various embodiments. As will be appreciated,although a Web-based environment is used for purposes of explanation,different environments may be used, as appropriate, to implement variousembodiments. The system includes an electronic client device 802, whichcan include any appropriate device operable to send and receiverequests, messages or information over an appropriate network 804 andconvey information back to a user of the device. Examples of such clientdevices include personal computers, cell phones, handheld messagingdevices, laptop computers, set-top boxes, personal data assistants,electronic book readers and the like. The network can include anyappropriate network, including an intranet, the Internet, a cellularnetwork, a local area network or any other such network or combinationthereof. Components used for such a system can depend at least in partupon the type of network and/or environment selected. Protocols andcomponents for communicating via such a network are well known and willnot be discussed herein in detail. Communication over the network can beenabled via wired or wireless connections and combinations thereof. Inthis example, the network includes the Internet, as the environmentincludes a Web server 806 for receiving requests and serving content inresponse thereto, although for other networks an alternative deviceserving a similar purpose could be used, as would be apparent to one ofordinary skill in the art.

The illustrative environment includes at least one application server808 and a data store 810. It should be understood that there can beseveral application servers, layers or other elements, processes orcomponents, which may be chained or otherwise configured, which caninteract to perform tasks such as obtaining data from an appropriatedata store. As used herein the term “data store” refers to any device orcombination of devices capable of storing, accessing and retrievingdata, which may include any combination and number of data servers,databases, data storage devices and data storage media, in any standard,distributed or clustered environment. The application server can includeany appropriate hardware and software for integrating with the datastore as needed to execute aspects of one or more applications for theclient device and handling a majority of the data access and businesslogic for an application. The application server provides access controlservices in cooperation with the data store and is able to generatecontent such as text, graphics, audio and/or video to be transferred tothe user, which may be served to the user by the Web server in the formof HTML, XML or another appropriate structured language in this example.The handling of all requests and responses, as well as the delivery ofcontent between the client device 802 and the application server 808,can be handled by the Web server 806. It should be understood that theWeb and application servers are not required and are merely examplecomponents, as structured code discussed herein can be executed on anyappropriate device or host machine as discussed elsewhere herein.

The data store 810 can include several separate data tables, databasesor other data storage mechanisms and media for storing data relating toa particular aspect. For example, the data store illustrated includesmechanisms for storing production data 812 and user information 816,which can be used to serve content for the production side. The datastore also is shown to include a mechanism for storing log or sessiondata 814. It should be understood that there can be many other aspectsthat may need to be stored in the data store, such as page imageinformation and access rights information, which can be stored in any ofthe above listed mechanisms as appropriate or in additional mechanismsin the data store 810. The data store 810 is operable, through logicassociated therewith, to receive instructions from the applicationserver 808 and obtain, update or otherwise process data in responsethereto. In one example, a user might submit a search request for acertain type of element. In this case, the data store might access theuser information to verify the identity of the user and can access thecatalog detail information to obtain information about elements of thattype. The information can then be returned to the user, such as in aresults listing on a Web page that the user is able to view via abrowser on the user device 802. Information for a particular element ofinterest can be viewed in a dedicated page or window of the browser.

Each server typically will include an operating system that providesexecutable program instructions for the general administration andoperation of that server and typically will include computer-readablemedium storing instructions that, when executed by a processor of theserver, allow the server to perform its intended functions. Suitableimplementations for the operating system and general functionality ofthe servers are known or commercially available and are readilyimplemented by persons having ordinary skill in the art, particularly inlight of the disclosure herein.

The environment in one embodiment is a distributed computing environmentutilizing several computer systems and components that areinterconnected via communication links, using one or more computernetworks or direct connections. However, it will be appreciated by thoseof ordinary skill in the art that such a system could operate equallywell in a system having fewer or a greater number of components than areillustrated in FIG. 8. Thus, the depiction of the system 800 in FIG. 8should be taken as being illustrative in nature and not limiting to thescope of the disclosure.

As discussed above, the various embodiments can be implemented in a widevariety of operating environments, which in some cases can include oneor more user computers, computing devices, or processing devices whichcan be used to operate any of a number of applications. User or clientdevices can include any of a number of general purpose personalcomputers, such as desktop or laptop computers running a standardoperating system, as well as cellular, wireless, and handheld devicesrunning mobile software and capable of supporting a number of networkingand messaging protocols. Such a system also can include a number ofworkstations running any of a variety of commercially-availableoperating systems and other known applications for purposes such asdevelopment and database management. These devices also can includeother electronic devices, such as dummy terminals, thin-clients, gamingsystems, and other devices capable of communicating via a network.

Various aspects also can be implemented as part of at least one serviceor Web service, such as may be part of a service-oriented architecture.Services such as Web services can communicate using any appropriate typeof messaging, such as by using messages in extensible markup language(XML) format and exchanged using an appropriate protocol such as SOAP(derived from the “Simple Object Access Protocol”). Processes providedor executed by such services can be written in any appropriate language,such as the Web Services Description Language (WSDL). Using a languagesuch as WSDL allows for functionality such as the automated generationof client-side code in various SOAP frameworks.

Most embodiments utilize at least one network that would be familiar tothose skilled in the art for supporting communications using any of avariety of commercially-available protocols, such as TCP/IP, OSI, FTP,UPnP, NFS, CIFS, and AppleTalk. The network can be, for example, a localarea network, a wide-area network, a virtual private network, theInternet, an intranet, an extranet, a public switched telephone network,an infrared network, a wireless network, and any combination thereof.

In embodiments utilizing a Web server, the Web server can run any of avariety of server or mid-tier applications, including HTTP servers, FTPservers, CGI servers, data servers, Java servers, and businessapplication servers. The server(s) also may be capable of executingprograms or scripts in response requests from user devices, such as byexecuting one or more Web applications that may be implemented as one ormore scripts or programs written in any programming language, such asJava®, C, C# or C++, or any scripting language, such as Perl, Python, orTCL, as well as combinations thereof. The server(s) may also includedatabase servers, including without limitation those commerciallyavailable from Oracle®, Microsoft®, Sybase®, and IBM®.

The environment can include a variety of data stores and other memoryand storage media as discussed above. These can reside in a variety oflocations, such as on a storage medium local to (and/or resident in) oneor more of the computers or remote from any or all of the computersacross the network. In a particular set of embodiments, the informationmay reside in a storage-area network (“SAN”) familiar to those skilledin the art. Similarly, any necessary files for performing the functionsattributed to the computers, servers, or other network devices may bestored locally and/or remotely, as appropriate. Where a system includescomputerized devices, each such device can include hardware elementsthat may be electrically coupled via a bus, the elements including, forexample, at least one central processing unit (CPU), at least one inputdevice (e.g., a mouse, keyboard, controller, touch screen, or keypad),and at least one output device (e.g., a display device, printer, orspeaker). Such a system may also include one or more storage devices,such as disk drives, optical storage devices, and solid-state storagedevices such as random access memory (“RAM”) or read-only memory(“ROM”), as well as removable media devices, memory cards, flash cards,etc.

Such devices also can include a computer-readable storage media reader,a communications device (e.g., a modem, a network card (wireless orwired), an infrared communication device, etc.), and working memory asdescribed above. The computer-readable storage media reader can beconnected with, or configured to receive, a computer-readable storagemedium, representing remote, local, fixed, and/or removable storagedevices as well as storage media for temporarily and/or more permanentlycontaining, storing, transmitting, and retrieving computer-readableinformation. The system and various devices also typically will includea number of software applications, modules, services, or other elementslocated within at least one working memory device, including anoperating system and application programs, such as a client applicationor Web browser. It should be appreciated that alternate embodiments mayhave numerous variations from that described above. For example,customized hardware might also be used and/or particular elements mightbe implemented in hardware, software (including portable software, suchas applets), or both. Further, connection to other computing devicessuch as network input/output devices may be employed.

Storage media and computer readable media for containing code, orportions of code, can include any appropriate media known or used in theart, including storage media and communication media, such as but notlimited to volatile and non-volatile, removable and non-removable mediaimplemented in any method or technology for storage and/or transmissionof information such as computer readable instructions, data structures,program modules, or other data, including RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memoryor other memory technology, CD-ROM, digital versatile disk (DVD) orother optical storage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic diskstorage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium which canbe used to store the desired information and which can be accessed bythe a system device. Based on the disclosure and teachings providedherein, a person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate other waysand/or methods to implement the various embodiments.

The specification and drawings are, accordingly, to be regarded in anillustrative rather than a restrictive sense. It will, however, beevident that various modifications and changes may be made thereuntowithout departing from the broader spirit and scope of the invention asset forth in the claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method comprising:receiving a communication at a computing device; displaying, on aportion of a display screen of the computing device, an alert indicativeof receipt of the communication, wherein the alert is displayed alongwith at least a portion of a first interface of a first application ofthe computing device and provides an option for displaying a secondinterface for performing an action with respect to the communication;displaying, on the display screen, the second interface associated witha second application based on a selection of the option, the secondinterface overlaying the first interface and configured to receive auser input for causing the second application to perform the action; andremoving the second interface upon receipt of the user input.